A Network Approach to Suicide Rates

这项研究旨在评估美国自杀统计的有效性，从而评估自杀统计的效用，这是分析自杀原因的基本前提。这项研究是主要调查人员早期工作的后续工作，他们发现1969-70年间发生了一起误报自杀事件。本研究利用社会学理论研究验尸官和验尸官的个人、专业和社区关系如何影响他们对“可疑”死亡进行分类的决定。这一网络方法将使用1989年和1990年从美国所有验尸官和法医那里收集的数据进行测试。这些数据将与美国人口普查、全国教会理事会和国家卫生统计中心的其他数据一起使用。鉴于美国报告的自杀率上升越来越令人担忧，特别是在年轻人中，对报告过程本身的研究至关重要。这项研究应该阐明如何调整官方比率以识别高危群体，并在此过程中澄清自杀的根本原因。

This study aims to evaluate the validity, and hence the utility, of suicide statistics in the United States, an essential prerequisite for analyzing the causes of suicide. This research follows up on earlier work by the principal investigators which found a misreporting of suicide in 1969- 70. The present study draws on sociological theory to examine how the personal, professional and community ties of coroners and medical examiners operate to influence their decisions in classifying "suspicious" deaths. This network approach will be tested using data collected from all coroners and medical examiners in the United States in 1989 and 1990. These data will be used in conjunction with other data from the U.S. Census, the National Council of Churches, and the Nation Center for Health Statistics. Given the growing concern about the rise in reported rates of suicide in the United States, especially among youth, research on the reporting process itself is critical. This study should shed light on how official rates might be adjusted to identify high risk groups and, in the process, clarify the underlying causes of suicide.